A mum says she is 'desperately worried' for her autistic son after McDonald's announced that it will no longer use plastic cutlery in its stores. Alex Finnigan, 28, who has been non-verbal since birth, has used the plastic McFlurry spoons to "reduce his anxiety" for the last ten years.
However, on Tuesday the fast food chain reported that it would be axing plastic spoons in favour of a wooden alternative. Alex's mum Tricia said the news sent her into a state of "sheer panic", as Alex has turned violent in the past when he has been unable to get a hold of the utensil.
The mum says "she does not know" what to do, and fears how Alex will react when her three month stockpile runs out. Speaking to the ECHO, Tricia said: "He carries them with him all the time, he takes them to bed, to the toilet and wherever he goes he constantly has them in his hands. When we can't get them he has meltdowns.
"He can't take no for an answer, he will grab hold of us and forces us out of the door. He is usually extremely placid but he can become violent. He has hit his head a few times and taken the door off its hinges in a desperate attempt to try and get the spoons."
The 60-year-old, from Maghull, says family and friends have kept her in constant supply of spoons by "picking them up" for her whenever they visit the restaurant. She has also been buying boxes of them from a McDonald's in her area for £12.
Tricia said: "When we found out it was sheer panic and frantic desperation I don't know how we will manage his behaviour. Even the restaurants can't get hold of them as they have been discontinued, they are the only thing he is interested in.
"I am desperately worried because if he turns violent family members are going to get hurt, he is six foot and over 20 stone. As he is non-verbal he will not accept that we can't get them."
Nina Prichard, head of sustainable and ethical sourcing at McDonald's, said: "As a business, we're committed to taking action on packaging and waste and increasing our use of sustainable materials. We're pleased to announce another step forward in eliminating single-use plastics and it's great to be switching our famous McFlurry spoons to this new paper-based material."
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